


A Kneazel named Custard

by Skarla



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Familiars, Gen, Marauders Era (Harry Potter), The Potter's Cat, cats as apologies
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-16
Updated: 2020-10-19
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:00:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,365
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27041635
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skarla/pseuds/Skarla
Summary: At the beginning of her seventh year, Lily Evans is presented with an apology cat.
Relationships: James Potter/Lily Evans Potter
Comments: 8
Kudos: 33





	1. Part 1

Lily Evans had managed to complete six whole years of magical schooling without a familiar, but she couldn't deny that when she was presented with an amber-eyed ball of orange fluff on the Hogwarts Express, said fluff being only a few shades lighter than her hair, her heart melted a little.

She still objected, but as the objection was voiced with her hands buried in soft ginger fur, she suspected that it lacked the necessary conviction to be taken seriously.

"You can't just give me a cat, Potter," she said.

The unruly-haired git grinned at her, arms folded as he leant against the compartment door. "No backsies," he drawled in his ridiculous upper-class accent. "He's part kneazel, he's yours now. Look at the way he's behaving."

Lily looked down at the cat - kneazel cat? - who was rubbing his little cheek against the front of her robes and purring.

"So, apology accepted?" asked the troublemaker who had somehow, Dumbledore only knew why, qualified to be head boy that year. He tried to play off as nonchalant, but Lily had been friends with Severus Snape for years and knew when a teenage boy was pretending not to take something he wanted very much seriously.

"I think I'll call him Custard," she decided, and Potter's grin was so bright it transformed his whole face. 

He wasn't too bad when he was smiling rather than smirking, she decided. 

*

Custard was a dream of a pet. He was intelligent, he once ran up to her dorm to fetch a spare quill when hers snapped while she was studying in the common room. He was an excellent bedfellow, not moving too much when he curled up at the foot of the mattress. As autumn marched forward into winter and the castle grew colder, he would sometimes curl up against her side under the covers like a furry hot water bottle.

She spent some of her precious galleons on a special litter tray for him, charmed so that anything inanimate that wasn't the special sand it was filled with would vanish within a minute of being deposited. Mary nearly lost a slipper to it once, but luckily they were able to retrieve it before the charm took effect.

She took Custard home for Christmas of course, after a bath in an extra strong flea repellent potion Severus had helped her brew. It was his last chance with her, she had made that clear, but she hoped that brewing with her was more appealing than hanging with wannabe death eaters. They always had fun after all, and Sev turned out to be rather fond of cats. Or perhaps it was just her cat.

Tuney, of course, was a horror about the kitten. Shrieking about fleas, and her boyfriend's allergies. As if Vernon Dursley was allergic to anything other than honest work and exercise. Their parents were hesitant at first, but after Custard caught a mouse that had been evading traps in the kitchen since Halloween, mum came down firmly on Custard's side, and Dad soon followed. 

Outnumbered, Tuney stopped screeching, but she still glared at Custard every time she saw him, and Lily was glad that her sister spent most of her time out of the house with her boyfriend and his gang of self important bullies. It was a lonely break, with Tuney not speaking to her and Sev remaining at Hogwarts. Custard followed her everywhere, even when she went out to run errands, and after a few days she found herself at the entrance to the old playground with Custard following at her heels. The ice on the gate smeared onto her gloves as she entered, and she hit the swing seat with a discrete warming charm before she sat down on the rubber. Custard jumped up onto the swing next to her, and she wished for a camera to capture the moment as she looked out across the deserted park and remembered flying in the summer sunshine and being called a witch for the first time.

"Let's not tell him, but giving me you really was the best thing James Potter has ever done for me," she confessed. 

Custard blinked at her, and then let out a soft miaow.

"You're quite right, this park is making me maudlin," she decided, jumping to her feet. "Let's get these letters to the post box and then head back to the house." 

*

Becoming Head Boy had matured James Potter by an astonishing amount, and Lily had started to genuinely enjoy his company by the time Spring started. Perhaps Dumbledore had known what he was doing after all. She even agreed to a Valentines date, although she spent the week between the agreement and the date itself wondering what on earth she had been thinking. She had several conversation with Custard about it as she practised her privacy charms on the curtains of her four-poster bed, but the fast growing kitten wasn't able to offer any practical advice. 

He did sit and listen to her, purring softly and nudging her hand with his little nose when she got lost in thought and stopped stroking him.

The date was a success in any case, so she really had been worrying about nothing. He kissed her on the hand like a gentleman at the end and everything.

Unfortunately it seemed like that was the last straw for Sev. Not even Custard could save their friendship now, not after he had called her that horrible slur.

*

By the time they were married and little Harry arrived, Custard was an integral part of the household. Lily had been worried that he would be jealous of the baby, but instead Custard practically adopted him. They often engaged in an odd game of fetch, where Harry would throw his toys as far as his chubby arms could, and Custard would fetch them back for him. James looked on this game with paternal approval.

"Good to develop those Quidditch skills early," he declared, and Lily caught him with a broomstick catalogue later that week, perusing the children's brooms.

When they went into hiding in Godrick's hollow, of course Custard came too. Lily wondered if the large ginger cat would be Harry's only playmate until the end of the war, and thought that he was sure to have forgotten his fledgling friendship with little Neville by the time it had ended.

When Peter's betrayal brought Voldemort to the cottage door, she spared a second to be glad that Custard, underfoot and affectionate since she first held him on the Hogwarts Express, was suddenly nowhere to be seen. 


	2. Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 13 Years Later...

Hermione really wasn't all that sure about Crookshanks anymore. After picking him up in Diagon Alley, the store owner saying something about him having been put up for rehoming after his elderly owner couldn't take care of him anymore, he had been wonderful. She had taken him home, and he had nosed around her things, used his tray and curled up to sleep on her bed. He seemed happy to doze next to her while she studied, and never, ever tried to bat at her quill while she was taking notes, which had been something she had been worried about.

But once they got to Hogwarts he had changed. Roaming around the castle at all hours of the day and night, trying to attack Scabbers, and when they were all in the common room he sat with Harry more often than he did with her, not that Harry seemed to notice at all.

And then it turned out that he was helping Sirius Black!

Of course, once the truth about Scabbers had come out, the whole thing made a great deal more sense. Still, she wasn't sure about Crookshanks. Now that she knew what he was capable of, it seemed like he wasn't all that interested in being her familiar. She read three books on the topic of familiars over the summer, which did nothing to assuage her doubts, but she kept them to herself. The boys were far more interested in the Quidditch World Cup after all.

She watched with resignation on the train as once he was let loose in the compartment, her cat again chose to jump up onto the seat next to Harry. He didn't even seem to notice, dropping an absent hand to smooth the fur between Crookshank's ragged ears, and Hermione was astonished to see her cat close his eyes and rub up into Harry's fingers.

She made a mental note to speak with him about it when they were alone. Perhaps she was doing something wrong?

Now that Sirius was safely abroad, and Pettigrew was off doing goodness knows what for his Dark Lord, Crookshanks seemed content to stay close rather than be off patrolling the corridors. He started following the trio to classes and sitting under the benches in the Great Hall at meals, and as such it wasn't long before Hemione found herself in an awkward position thanks to her new ginger shadow.

Severus Snape didn't loom quite as much as he had in her first year, but he was still an intimidatingly tall man as he stood in front of her, peering down at Crookshanks with an odd look on his face.

"...where did you get this cat, Miss Granger?" he asked eventually.

"From a shop in Diagon Alley, Sir," she replied at once, and when he merely raised an eyebrow, filled the silence between them with; "I was told he had had an elderly owner who died."

Snape closed his eyes briefly, and then in a move that astonished her into taking a step back, swept into a crouch, his dark robes billowing around him.

He held out a hand that seemed to be trembling slightly for Crookshanks to sniff and swallowed heavily as the cat stepped forward. "Custard?" 

To Hermione's astonishment, her usually unfriendly cat miaowed loudly before he headbutted the teachers hand firmly, a rumbling, rasping purr emanating from his furry chest.

"Sir, I'm sorry, I don't-"

Severus Snape looked up at her, and she was surprised to see tears in his dark eyes. "This cat has been to Hogwarts before," he told her as he scratched Crookshanks gently between the ears. "His first owner is indeed deceased, but not of old age. He must have found another home in the interim. I'm glad."

Without another word, he swept away. 

Hermione was left standing in the corridor, stomach rumbling as she stared at her cat, half expecting him to follow after the potions professor. Instead, after a moment of staring, Crookshanks - Custard? - returned to sit at her feet, looking up at her curiously.

"Come on," she said to his golden eyed stare. "Let's get some dinner." 

Harry and Ron had saved her a seat, and she knew better than to talk to them before they had cleared most of their plates, so she waited until the desserts appeared to tell them about her encounter with Snape.

"Blimey!" Ron said, his blue eyes wide, a forgotten forkful of banoffee pie halfway to his mouth. "So Crookshanks was originally called Custard? Will you change his name?"

"I think I'll have to," Hermione said. "He certainly seems to prefer it." 

"I wonder who his first owner was, if they were at Hogwarts at the same time as Snape," Harry said, the first to latch on to a possible mystery, as always. Hermione sometimes found herself comparing the three of them to the Scooby gang, with herself as Velma, Harry as Fred and Ron as Shaggy. She sometimes wondered if they'd ever obtain a Daphne to complete the comparison. Perhaps they didn't need one, Daphne wasn't good for much other than being kidnapped after all.

"We could write to Si-Snuffles, or Professor Lupin and ask?" Hermione suggested, feeling a little curious herself. "I know neither of them said anything last year, but there was rather a lot going on." 

"I vote we start with Professor Lupin," Ron said through a mouthful of pie. "He's a bit more with it than Snuffles."

"That's settled then," Harry said, serving himself a second slice of treacle tart. "We can draft something up this evening. Think it would be ok to use Hedwig, or should we use a school owl?" 

"Hedwig should be fine," Hemione said after they had all three considered it while clearing their plates. "It's not like Professor Lupin is hiding, and it's not a secret that we know him." 

"She'll probably be pleased to get out," Ron said, chugging the last of his pumpkin juice. "It's not like you send many letters."

_Dear Professor Lupin_

_Hermione found out today that her cat, Crookshanks, who we believe you may have encountered only once, was previously at Hogwarts under the name of Custard. We're not sure which year it was, but we think that it was during the time you were at school, given the source of the information._

_We were wondering if you knew of a part kneazel named Custard, and if so if you'd be able to provide any further details about his previous owner?_

_Yours Hopefully_   
_Harry, Ron & Hermione_

After arguing over the wording of the letter and going through five different drafts, they finally settled on what to say and the short missive was sent off into the night, clutched in Hedwig's capable talons.

"How long do you think, till he replies?" Harry wondered, leaning on the windowsill of the owlery. The poor house elves must have cleaned recently, as the stone was clean and there was hardly a feather to be seen in the draughty place.

"Dunno mate, no idea where he lives."

"It's in England though, so it'll probably be at least two days," Hermione reasoned. "More if she has to fly right down to the South."

Two days later, they realised that they could ask Hagrid if Professor Lupin didn't know anything, but before they could go charging down to the cottage to break their teeth on rock cakes, Harry remembered that Hagrid had met Crookshanks the previous year, and hadn't said anything at all about recognising him. 

The part kneazle certainly responded better to Custard than Crookshanks, Hermione was quick to discover. He was more affectionate, he slept on the end of her bed rather than roaming around the common room, and he once brought her a pair of clean socks from her trunk when she was running late. 

Still, when they all gathered together to study in the common room, he chose to sit next to Harry, purring softly.

Hedwig reappeared at breakfast the next morning, dropped the letter on top of Harry's fried egg and accepted a piece of sausage Hermione passed her with great dignity before she swept off again to nap for the day.

" _Scourgify_!" Harry commanded, poking his wand at the dribble of yellow.

Most of the egg yolk was cleared from the parchment, and the whole thing now smelt faintly of lemons, which was better than Ron would have managed she had to admit. Harry was a pretty decent Wizard when he put his mind to it, and it frustrated her no end the way he was happy to float along with Ron in the middle of the class.

"Open it now or later?" Harry asked, looking at her.

Hermione squared her shoulders and shoved the last of her toast into her mouth. "Let's get it out of the way, or we won't be able to focus in Herbology," she said.

"It's herbology first?" Ron exclaimed in dismay. "I left my coat upstairs."

"Not now, Ron!" Harry muttered, using his butter knife to lever up the wax seal.

_Dear Harry, Ron & Hermione_

_I confess that your letter has surprised me greatly. I do not recall meeting the cat/kneazel in question during my time as a professor, and so am unable to comment on the comparison between Crookshanks and Custard myself. If you trust this source, then this is a strange occurrence indeed._

_I met Custard for the first time at the beginning of my Seventh year, on the Hogwarts express. He had been acquired from somewhere by James, who intended to give him as an apology gift to Lily Evans. I believe that he bought him once he realised that they were to be Head Boy and Head Girl together, and that as she thought he was a complete idiot and he thought she was a goddess in mortal flesh, he had some making up to do._

_Harry, he went into hiding in Godrics Hollow with you when you were a baby, and Lily once described in her letters to me how you would drop food you disliked onto the floor for Custard to dispose of. There may be some pictures of him in your album._

_If Crookshanks is indeed Custard, then I am sure that Lily and James would be overjoyed that he escaped safely and that you have met him again, all these years later._

_Good luck with your studies this year, all of you._

_Moony_

Hermione finished the letter first, and sat back a little to watch Ron and Harry's faces as they finished the letter. Ron looked impressed, but Harry had paled, and it was him that she was most worried about. 

Custard, as per his new routine, had followed them into the hall. He had been lying under the table eating a boiled egg Ron had passed down to him, but now he climbed to his feet and rubbed his way around their legs, first Hermione, then Ron, finally settling with his side leaning against Harry's shin.

"So... He was your mum's cat," Ron said as Harry let the letter fall to the table top.

"Or at least, Snape seemed pretty sure that he was," Hermione added. "He might have been wrong."

Harry shook his head, his face tight. "He responds better to Custard, we've all seen that," he said quietly. After a moment he ducked down and reached for the kneazel, gently encouraging him up onto the bench. "Hi Custard," he said to the old, battle-scarred face. "Sorry I didn't recognise you, but I was only one. I hope you can forgive me."

Custard purred loudly, and headbutted Harry's chin and Hermione found her eyes filling with tears.

Both boy's faces twisted with comic alarm at the sight. "I'm sorry 'Mione!" Harry said hurriedly. "He's still your cat, of course!"

"But he isn't," Hermione sniffed. "He was yours first. He prefers you."

"No, that's not true," Ron protested. "It's you he lives with, you he sleeps with. Crook-Custard loves you."

"And he wasn't mine," Harry adds desperately. "He was my mum's, so he's a witches cat, not a wizard's cat. There's a difference."

Hermione frowned at him, the vague fact distracting her from her upset. "Where did you read that?" she asked suspiciously. "I don't remember that being in any of the books about familiars."

"No, it's true," Ron said earnestly as Harry nodded. "It's not really written down, it's just one of those things that everyone knows."

"An old wives tale then?" Hermione asked. Those were sometimes based in truth. She looked down at Custard, who had turned around to place a paw on her knee. He blinked his golden eyes slowly at her.

"See? He still likes you. He's your cat, 'Mione," Harry assured her. "And I would like to sit with the photo album tonight and see if we can find some pictures of him, but he's yours."

"Besides," Ron interjected. "You can only keep one pet at Hogwarts, and Harry already has Hedwig. C'mon, we're going to be late to herbology."

Harry and Hermione shared a look of fond exasperation over Ron's bluntness, and followed the redhead out of the Great Hall, Custard trotting at their heels. Later, they would stare at the photos in Harry's album for hours, searching for a trace of ginger fur, but for now life at Hogwarts continued, full of magic and strange coincidences and friendship.

Hermione decided then and there that she wouldn't let Custard liking Harry bother her anymore. After all, she was the one he followed up the stairs at the end of each day! 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A happy ending as promised! I think I got the idea for this from a tumblr post I saw on Pinterest, but I'm afraid I now have no hope of finding the original image. If anyone knows what I'm talking about and can link me, I'll happily give credit where it's due. 
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this little headcanon drabble - if you did, please let me know!


End file.
